Midnight Bayou was recommended to me by my friend Candice923. I have to say that it was very entertaining and kept me interested all the way through, which is a good sign.

The story of Midnight Bayou revolves around Manet Hall, a beautiful, majestic plantation house in New Orleans. In this case the setting really makes the story. This house has a history that draws the characters into it and makes the reader wonder what is going to happen next. New Orleans has a great history of the supernatural and Nora Roberts uses this to her advantage when telling the tale of Declan Fitzgerald.

Declan is a well to do lawyer from Boston who is drawn to Manet Hall during a spring break excursion in college. After a few years in trying to make a life work as a lawyer in Boston with the wrong woman, Declan realizes that his real dream is back at Manet Hall. He cancels his wedding and leaves his family to move into the old dilapidated mansion in New Orleans. Manet Hall needs some major work, but Declan feels that he has the hands to bring this old house back to life.

The history of the house begins to unfold the more that Declan tries to repair the rooms and groom the gardens. The sound of a baby crying, strange visions, and odd occurrences scare off hired help as well as visiting friends. A series of haunting dreams that has Declan waking in strange areas of the house cause Declan some worry about his health. The beautiful bar owner Lena (Angelina Simone) seems to have other ideas about the meaning of the dreams. Unfortunately her own history keeps her heart from giving in to the powers that be.

Declan is first introduced to Lena through his best friend Remy. Lena's good looks and mysterious ways cause Declan to fall head over heels. Declan's relationship with Lena becomes the focus of the story. The chapters involve twists and turns with Declan's determination to make Lena his wife and Lena's discomfort with giving up her sense of independence. Lena's grandmother makes a few observances of her own and tries to give Declan and Lena some well meaning advice.

Meanwhile Declan's giving nature sets him up as a host for his best friend's wedding. Effie, Remy's intelligent and sweet fiancée, has Declan rushing to finish the main areas of Manet Hall for presentation. A beautiful wedding day event brings to life the final chapters in Midnight Bayou and brings to close the mystery behind Manet Hall.

Nora Roberts does a great job of switching her story from the past to the present and keeping the stories intertwined. Although I had some of the plot line figured out less than halfway through the book, I still wanted to keep reading to see how Roberts finally tied together all the loose ends. I feel that there was still some left unexplained by the end of the book, but overall the story was well put together.

If you like Nora Roberts then this book should definitely be on your list. If you've never read anything by Roberts before then this is a great book to start with. Romance, mystery, a good ghost story. A good book to curl up in bed with.

Recommended: Yes